Embrace Change: The Art of Knowing When to Quit
Is it time to quit and give up? Quitting can be a strategic decision that opens up new opportunities you otherwise might have missed.
Quitting any goal, whether it’s related to a job, hobby, business, relationship, or anything else really, is usually the unpopular option. Even when faced with changing circumstances, “never give up” seems to be the adage. Perseverance is celebrated. It's easy to see quitting as a sign of failure, but in many cases, quitting can be a strategic decision that opens up new opportunities you otherwise might have missed.
Quitting
Think about it: if you're holding on to a plan that’s no longer in alignment with your goals, you’re wasting your time. You might even be missing out on something even better. Goals change all the time, and that’s fine. But how do you decide when it’s time to quit, or to persevere?
Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up. ~ Thomas Edison
One way to evaluate whether it's time to quit is by considering the concept of expected value (similar to the concept of experience value1 I’ve written about before). This involves a bit of mental time travel. Look ahead and calculate the possible outcomes of your decisions – both the potential gains and potential losses. Then, based on the outcome of this mental trip, you may want to consider alternative options for how you could be using your time.
Perseverance?
We often fall into the trap of investing more resources – time, money, energy – into something just because we've already invested so much. This is known as the sunk cost fallacy. Believe it or not, more than one marathon runner has broken a bone on course, and still finished the race. They were in excruciating pain, but endured it just because they felt compelled to finish what they started.
Goals can be incredibly motivating, pushing us to accomplish difficult things. However, they also create a false choice: finish, or don't bother starting. This is part of the "finish line mentality," where we see no value in partial completion. Everything becomes a pass/fail situation. For example, a runner who doesn't finish a marathon they signed up for might feel like a failure. But even partially finishing a marathon means you likely ran the same distance (if not more) as a successful 5K runner.
Overcoming Fear
Our fear of quitting often stems from a fear of failure, combined with the worry that we've wasted valuable resources.2 “We’ve already come so far”, we say - but at what cost? Our definitions of failure and waste are flawed. Being able to quit a situation that's no longer beneficial is an important life and business skill. Even if you're satisfied with where you are, keep your eyes open for other opportunities – circumstances can change, and quitting might lead you to success.
It's important to note that quitting isn't always about giving up entirely; it's about allowing yourself to change direction when circumstances change. Life isn't just about quitting, but about keeping your options open and your eyes peeled for different opportunities. So, as you travel through life and the world, remember that sometimes the best way to move forward is by knowing when to let go.
In my Travel book The Freedom Project I introduced the concept of Experience Value.